Magnetic drive pumping apparatus for electronic cigarette liquids and electronic cigarette product including the magnetic drive pumping apparatus

ABSTRACT

A magnetic drive pumping apparatus for electronic cigarette liquids and an electronic cigarette product including the magnetic drive pumping apparatus are provided. The magnetic drive pumping apparatus includes a magnetic drive micro-pump including a housing body and a pump body. A pump diaphragm is arranged inside the housing body, and a pump chamber is formed between the housing body and the pump diaphragm. A valve seat and a valve diaphragm are in the pump body. The pump diaphragm, the valve seat and the valve diaphragm jointly define a flow channel of electronic cigarette liquids. The pump diaphragm is fixed with a permanent magnet, and an inner wall of the housing body is fixed with an electromagnet corresponding to the permanent magnet. A liquid storage element includes a liquid tank and an air vent. The inlet of electronic cigarette liquids is connected to the liquid tank for liquids to pass through.

CROSS REFERENCE TO THE RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is the national phase entry of InternationalApplication No. PCT/CN2019/099831, filed on Aug. 8, 2019, which is basedupon and claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No.201910228759.8, filed on Mar. 25, 2019, the entire contents of which areincorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention belongs to the technical field of electroniccigarettes, and more specifically, relates to a magnetic drive pumpingapparatus for electronic cigarette liquids and an electronic cigaretteproduct including the magnetic drive pumping apparatus.

BACKGROUND

Liquids of electronic cigarettes are typically delivered to a heatingelement by way of siphoning a wicking component, e.g., wicking cotton,or a liquid tank. When transmitted in this manner, the volume of liquiddelivered to the heating element is unable to be controlled. Whetherexcessive or insufficient, if the incorrect volume of cigarette liquidis delivered, certain heating inefficiencies of the heating element arerealized. An insufficient amount of electronic cigarette liquiddelivered may lead to a dry burning or a ruined heater as a result ofthe element's elevated operating temperatures, in which case malodoroussmoke and steam may be produced. On the other hand, an excessive amountof electronic cigarette liquid delivered may result in insufficientatomization of the liquid as a result of the heating element operatingbelow its ideal temperature, in which case the amount of smoke may besignificantly reduced and the user made to feel as if s/he is inhalingthe cigarette liquid.

In order to manage the transmission of cigarette liquid and solve theabove problems, manufacturers have employed micro-pumps through whichdirectional quantitative pumping of electronic cigarette liquid may beachieved. Some of the subject pumps and devices have been patented. Inprior patent documents, however, the liquid tank and the micro-pump aregenerally disclosed as being separated resulting in an electroniccigarette of relatively large overall size. Moreover, the micro-pumpcomponents of such devices must be connected to the liquid tank and theheating element through various conduits and sealing apparatus, whichpresents numerous inefficiencies and too many parts. This makes theproduct not well-integrated, difficult and expensive to manufacture andassemble and increases the risk that the electronic cigarette liquid mayleak.

Magnetic drive micro-pumps are driven by external magnetic fields andare capable of pumping a large volume of liquids safely and reliablyunder low voltage with rapid response time.

SUMMARY

The present invention provides a magnetic drive pumping apparatus forelectronic cigarette liquids and an electronic cigarette productincluding the magnetic drive pumping apparatus. The apparatus has theadvantages of low input voltage, highly flexible pump diaphragm, ease offrequency adjustment, and quick response, which can lower the powerconsumption and accelerate the delivery of electronic cigarette liquidswhen pumping.

The present invention is implemented by the following technicalsolutions.

In one aspect of the invention, a magnetic drive pumping apparatus forelectronic cigarette liquids, which includes the following components:

the magnetic drive micro-pump 101; wherein the magnetic drive micro-pump101 includes the housing body 5 and the pump body 6. The pump diaphragm10 is arranged inside the housing body 5, and the pump chamber 7 isformed between the housing body 5 and the pump diaphragm 10. The valveseat 1 and the valve diaphragm 2 are set in the pump body 6. The pumpdiaphragm 10, the valve seat 1 and the valve diaphragm 2 jointly definethe flow channel 4 of electronic cigarette liquids. One end of the flowchannel is the inlet 9 of electronic cigarette liquids, and the otherend of the flow channel is the outlet 8 of electronic cigarette liquids.The pump diaphragm 10 is fixed with the permanent magnet 11, and theinner wall of the housing body 5 is fixed with the electromagnet 12corresponding to the permanent magnet 11; and

the liquid storage element 102; wherein the liquid storage element 102includes the liquid tank 3 and the air vent 14; and the inlet 9 ofelectronic cigarette liquids is connected to the liquid tank 3 forliquids to pass through.

In a preferred implementation of the present invention, the outlet 8 ofelectronic cigarette liquids is connected to an atomizer.

In a preferred implementation of the present invention, the outer wallof housing body 5 is fixed with annular electrodes or the housing body 5is fixed with pin-shaped or chip-shaped contact electrode, so that themagnetic drive micro-pump is connected to a power supply and a controlsystem.

In a preferred implementation of the present invention, the outer wallof the housing body 5 is equipped with a wiring duct, wires arecontained in the wiring duct, and the wires are configured to connectthe magnetic drive micro-pump 101 to the annular electrode.

In a preferred implementation of the present invention, the flow channel4 of electronic cigarette liquids is a non-linear flow channel.

In the present invention, the flow channel 4 of electronic cigaretteliquids is designed in a form of broken line or spiral line to extendthe flow path of liquids increase the pumping pressure on liquids in thecase of the magnetic drive micro-pump 101 having a small size.

In the present invention, the magnetic drive micro-pump 101 and the pumpchamber 7 are small enough to concentrate the driving energy,facilitating the rapid and powerful pumping of the liquids.

In the present invention, the magnetic drive micro-pump 101 isintegrated with the liquid storage element 102 to form one piece. Thevarious pipelines through which the magnetic drive micro-pump 101 isconnected to the liquid storage element and the heating element can beeliminated by providing the wiring duct on the pump body foraccommodating wires, greatly enhancing the integration of the magneticdrive micro-pump 101, the liquid storage element 102 and the heatingelement, significantly minimizing the apparatus and increasing theportability.

In a preferred implementation of the present invention, the valvediaphragm 2 can be produced by spin coating the room temperaturevulcanized silicone rubber on the stainless steel substrate. The pumpdiaphragm 10 can be produced by a solvent casting method, namely,pouring the room temperature vulcanized silicone rubber on thepolypropylene substrate. Alternatively, the pump diaphragm 10 can alsobe made of other highly elastic polymer materials (such as SU-8, PMMA,etc.). The permanent magnet 11 is placed in the center of the pumpdiaphragm 10. The electromagnet 12 is embedded in the inner wall of thehousing body 5 and directly opposite to the permanent magnet 11. Toensure vibration of the pump diaphragm, a predetermined distance shouldbe maintained between the electromagnet 12 and the permanent magnet 11.The wire duct can be provided on or inside the micro-pump housing bodyto contain the wires connected to the electromagnet 12.

In a preferred implementation of the present invention, the permanentmagnet 11 can be a Nd—Fe—B block or a Sm—Co magnet, which is combinedwith the pump diaphragm 10 by bonding. Alternatively, magnetic materialscan be integrated on the pump diaphragm 10 by micro-manufacturingtechniques such as electroplating, sputtering, pulsed laser depositionand others. The electromagnet 12 can be a conventional ring-corestructure, a curved ring-core structure, or a multi-layer patternedchip-shaped structure.

In a preferred implementation of the present invention, each of themicro components can be manufactured using Micro-Electro-MechanicalSystem (MEMS) technology, and the assembly of the components can beachieved by lamination, adhesion, bonding, and other known securingmethods. The air vent 14 is provided at the bottom of the housing of theliquid storage element 102 and configured for balancing the pressuresinside and outside the apparatus during inhalation. In addition, the airvent 14 allows the liquid tank 3 to shrink and expand to facilitate theflow of electronic cigarette liquids to the micro-pump.

The second aspect of the present invention relates to an electroniccigarette product including the magnetic drive pumping apparatus forelectronic cigarette liquids, including any one of the above magneticdrive pumping apparatus for electronic cigarette liquids.

The working principle of the present invention is as follow. Theelectromagnet 12 produces an external magnetic field when being appliedwith a voltage. The permanent magnet 11 is attracted and repelledaccordingly to induce the vibration of the pump diaphragm 10, whichultimately drives the opening and closing of the valve diaphragm 2. Byperiodical opening and closing of the valve diaphragm 2, the electroniccigarette liquids 13 in the liquid tank 3 is driven to enter themagnetic drive micro-pump 101 (when pumping into) and be discharged frommagnetic drive micro-pump 101 (when pumping out). FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 showthe effects of pumping-in and pumping-out of the electronic cigaretteliquids, respectively.

Advantages

1. In the present invention, the flow channel of electronic cigaretteliquids is designed in a form of broken line or spiral line to extendthe flow path of the electronic cigarette liquids and increase thepumping pressure on the electronic cigarette liquids in the case of themagnetic drive micro-pump having a small size.

2. In the present invention, the magnetic drive micro-pump is integratedwith the liquid storage element to form one piece. The various conduitsthrough which the magnetic drive micro-pump is connected to the liquidstorage element and the heating element can be eliminated by providingthe wiring duct on the pump body for accommodating wires, significantlyenhancing the integration of the magnetic drive micro-pump, the liquidstorage element and the heating element, substantially minimizing theapparatus and increasing the portability.

3. The magnetic drive micro-pump has the advantages of low inputvoltage, highly flexible pump diaphragm, the ease of frequencyadjustment, and quick response, which can lower the power consumptionand accelerate the delivery of electronic cigarette liquids whenpumping.

4. The flow channel of electronic cigarette liquids is enclosed insidethe micro-pump, avoiding the flow blockage caused by bubbles in thepipelines arranged outside the micro-pump and the possible leakage ofelectronic cigarette liquids due to poor sealing between the pipelinesand the micro-pump.

5. The built-in liquid tank is conducive to the miniaturization andportability of electronic cigarettes because separate external liquidtank components can be eliminated. Furthermore, the electronic cigaretteliquids stored in the built-in liquid tank are stable and clean becausethey are totally isolated from the external environment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of the magnetic drive pumpingapparatus for electronic cigarette liquids;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of the magneticdrive pumping apparatus for electronic cigarette liquids when theelectronic cigarette liquids are pumped into the magnetic drive pumpingapparatus; and

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of the magneticdrive pumping apparatus for electronic cigarette liquids when theelectronic cigarette liquids are pumped out of the magnetic drivepumping apparatus.

In the drawings:

100—magnetic drive pumping apparatus, 101—magnetic drive micro-pump,102—liquid storage element; 1—valve seat, 2—valve diaphragm, 3—liquidtank, 4—flow channel of electronic cigarette liquids, 5—housing body,6—pump body, 7—pump chamber, 8—outlet of electronic cigarette liquids,9—inlet of electronic cigarette liquids, 10—pump diaphragm, 11—permanentmagnet, 12—electromagnet, 13—electronic cigarette liquids, 14—air vent.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS Embodiment

A magnetic drive pumping apparatus for electronic cigarette liquidsincludes the following components:

the magnetic drive micro-pump 101; wherein the magnetic drive micro-pump101 includes the housing body 5 and the pump body 6, and the pumpdiaphragm 10 is arranged inside the housing body 5, and the pump chamber7 is formed between the housing body 5 and the pump diaphragm 10. Thevalve seat 1 and the valve diaphragm 2 are set in the pump body 6. Thepump diaphragm 10, the valve seat 1 and the valve diaphragm 2 jointlydefine the flow channel 4 of electronic cigarette liquids. One end ofthe flow channel is the inlet 9 of electronic cigarette liquids, and theother end of the flow channel is the outlet 8 of electronic cigaretteliquids, The pump diaphragm 10 is fixed with the permanent magnet 11,and the inner wall of the housing body 5 is fixed with the electromagnet12 corresponding to the permanent magnet 11.

The liquid storage element 102 includes the liquid tank 3 and the airvent 14. The inlet 9 of electronic cigarette liquids is connected to theliquid tank 3 for liquids to pass through.

In the present embodiment, the outlet 8 of electronic cigarette liquidsis connected to an atomizer.

In the present embodiment, the outer wall of the housing body 5 is fixedwith annular electrodes or the housing body 5 is fixed with pin-shapedor chip-shaped contact electrodes, so that the magnetic drive micro-pumpis connected to a power supply and a control system.

In the present embodiment, the outer wall of the housing body 5 isprovided with a wiring duct, wires are contained in the wiring duct, andthe wires are configured for connecting the magnetic drive micro-pump101 to the annular electrode.

In the present embodiment, the flow channel 4 of electronic cigaretteliquids is a non-linear flow channel.

What is claimed is:
 1. A magnetic drive pumping apparatus for electroniccigarette liquids, comprising: a magnetic drive micro-pump, wherein themagnetic drive micro-pump comprises a housing body and a pump body, apump diaphragm is arranged inside the housing body, and a pump chamberis formed between the housing body and the pump diaphragm; a valve seatand a valve diaphragm are set in the pump body, the pump diaphragm, thevalve seat and the valve diaphragm jointly define a flow channel ofelectronic cigarette liquids; a first end of the flow channel ofelectronic cigarette liquids is an inlet of electronic cigaretteliquids, and a second end of the flow channel of electronic cigaretteliquids is an outlet of electronic cigarette liquids; the pump diaphragmis fixed with a permanent magnet, an inner wall of the housing body isfixed with an electromagnet, and the electromagnet corresponds to thepermanent magnet; and a liquid storage element; wherein the liquidstorage element comprises a liquid tank and an air vent; and the inletof electronic cigarette liquids is connected to the liquid tank for theelectronic cigarette liquids to pass through.
 2. The magnetic drivepumping apparatus for the electronic cigarette liquids according toclaim 1, wherein the outlet of electronic cigarette liquids is connectedto an atomizer.
 3. The magnetic drive pumping apparatus for theelectronic cigarette liquids according to claim 1, wherein an outer wallof the housing body is fixed with a plurality of annular electrodes orthe housing body is fixed with a plurality of pine-shaped or chip-shapedcontact electrodes, so that the magnetic drive micro-pump is connectedto a power supply and a control system.
 4. The magnetic drive pumpingapparatus for the electronic cigarette liquids according to claim 3,wherein the outer wall of the housing body is provided with a wiringduct, and a plurality of wires are contained in the wiring duct, and theplurality of wires are configured to connect the magnetic drivemicro-pump to the plurality of annular electrodes.
 5. The magnetic drivepumping apparatus for the electronic cigarette liquids according toclaim 1, wherein the flow channel of electronic cigarette liquids isnon-linear.
 6. An electronic cigarette product, comprising the magneticdrive pumping apparatus for the electronic cigarette liquids accordingto claim
 1. 7. The electronic cigarette product according to claim 6,wherein the outlet of electronic cigarette liquids is connected to anatomizer.
 8. The electronic cigarette product according to claim 6,wherein an outer wall of the housing body is fixed with a plurality ofannular electrodes or the housing body is fixed with a plurality ofpine-shaped or chip-shaped contact electrodes, so that the magneticdrive micro-pump is connected to a power supply and a control system. 9.The electronic cigarette product according to claim 8, wherein the outerwall of the housing body is provided with a wiring duct, and a pluralityof wires are contained in the wiring duct, and the plurality of wiresare configured to connect the magnetic drive micro-pump to the pluralityof annular electrodes.
 10. The electronic cigarette product according toclaim 6, wherein the flow channel of electronic cigarette liquids isnon-linear.